For the third interview in this series, in which I talk to people who’ve left their corporate job for a new career, I’m telling the story of Meggi Rombach, who is just about to celebrate her one-year anniversary in her job at the International Committee of the Red Cross. Meggi is another colleague from Procter & Gamble, and although I was familiar with the headlines of her move into the humanitarian world, I’m so happy to have had the chance to fill in the details.

Meggi’s story resonates with me particularly strongly, and touches quite a nerve. Having focused on development economics and the politics of sub-Saharan Africa during my undergraduate studies in England, I moved to Switzerland to study international relations in Geneva, the seat of the European headquarters for the United Nations and a host of other international organisations and NGOs. I wrote my postgraduate thesis on media and governance with case studies on Mali, Nigeria and Zimbabwe, and got an internship in the communications department at the United Nations Development Programme. And then I took a corporate job in marketing.

Now, I have absolutely no regrets. I learned so much in that marketing job, I met the most amazing people, it opened all sorts of opportunities that I’m still benefiting from, and I love what I’m doing now. But even so I hope that I’ll at some point be able to apply my private sector experience and marketing know-how to the non-profit sector, whether in a pro bono capacity or in a more substantial role in the future. As Meggi describes, it is very difficult to get into the non-profit world, and it takes both skill and determination, and a lot of networking, to break through.

I’m so proud of Meggi and impressed with her perseverance, and her commitment to finding something that was truer to who she was and what she wanted to do. For those of you who are similarly yearning for a more meaningful role and perhaps a less competitive working environment, you’d do well to read on and to follow the valuable and very concrete tips that Meggi shares in her interview.

About 14 years ago, in her first year at university studying international business administration, Meggi met Birger. As the son of an engineer working for the German development organisation, he had grown up in various African countries, and talked about his father’s work and life in Africa. Meggi’s own father had told her about the inequalities and the appalling situations many people around the world were living in, and Birger’s stories filled these rather abstract concepts with life. To get first-hand experience, Meggi volunteered in a girls’ secondary school in Kenya during the next semester break. She didn’t yet know the best way to get more involved, but she realised that she wanted to contribute to society somehow, at some point. Life took her on a detour to the corporate world as brand manager, for almost a decade, before she found the path to her current job at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), where she is now in charge of creating partnerships and raising funds from private companies.

1) At what moment did you decide it was time for a change?

The fast-moving, high-pressure marketing world wasn’t for me; I had known that for some time. Yet, to make me take action, things needed to get worse before they got better: I was extremely stressed at work. I had been under too much pressure for too long and was close to a burnout. I was miserable and had completely lost my self-confidence. In the same year, P&G offered a sabbatical programme with UNICEF, and I was among the lucky people selected, spending three months in Cameroon as a communication and fundraising consultant. These three months were intense with good and bad moments. The experience gave me a first glimpse of the UN system and a job in the field. On my return, I half-heartedly tried to get back into a marketing role. I knew that it was time to change, and a few months later I took the leap of faith and quit.

2) What was the biggest challenge you faced in making the change?

Keeping the faith. It’s extremely difficult to get a job at the UN, especially at headquarters, even with several years of experience in a related field, development studies or social science, for instance. Transitioning from the private sector was not going to be easy and was certainly not going to happen overnight. All in all, from the day I returned from Cameroon to my first day in my (paid) dream job in April 2013, it took me two years including a one-year master programme and various volunteering placements.

Looking back, this transition period was a fascinating time: back to school, I met amazing people, learnt something new every day, and extended my network in the humanitarian sector. However, with the end of my financial resources in sight, I started getting very nervous in early 2013. What if my money ran out before I found a paid job? For almost a year, I had applied for jobs at the UN and at NGOs in Geneva and in the field, and played my network wherever I could, without success. I had just extended my volunteering placement with UNICEF when I spotted exactly the type of job I was looking for at the ICRC. I applied, got an interview, then another one, then the job offer, and started in my current role in April 2013 – exactly one year ago. Sometimes, I’m still in awe that it worked out.

3) Where did you get the support you needed to make it happen?

My friends and family, and a handful of close friends who were particularly helpful, listened to me, gave me advice, cheered me up, and told me off when needed. It also helped me a lot to have role models, people who had already made the change. A close friend of mine had moved from sponsorship to fundraising at UNICEF. I followed his path and his guidance – I did the same master’s programme and used every opportunity to network and gain experience in the new field I was moving towards.

Networking in general helped me a lot. This has been said before, but, especially when changing to a new field, it’s priceless. I stayed in touch with my professors and guest speakers from university and with people I met at conferences or social events. I’m a curious person and I’m genuinely interested in people and love socialising. You never know where this will take you, and it doesn’t matter as long as you’re enjoying the conversation. For me an important element was that I wasn’t afraid to ask for help or advice – whether from family, friends, professors, or random people I’d just met. Only if you dare to ask can people help you… and I helped others in return wherever I could.

4) What’s the best part of your lifestyle today?

I used to feel like a penguin on land: I could survive and walk… now, I’m back in the water and can navigate effortlessly, although not without challenges. The best part is that I feel that I can be myself and be appreciated for it. In my marketing job, I felt that being a people person was a “nice to have”, while analytical skills and a passion to be the best were much more important. Now, my strengths in bringing people together, being curious to learn everything about our operations, and being open to testing new approaches, are crucial to growing our fundraising unit. Especially when it comes to partnerships with companies beyond charitable giving, we are trying new approaches and I love being part of that journey.

5) What one piece of advice would you give to someone who is considering making a big career or lifestyle change?

Get clear on what you want, take baby steps in roughly the right direction, and then let go and go with the flow. When I say “get clear”, I don’t necessarily mean on a specific job description. I’m referring more to how you would like to work. I scribbled my ideas on a poster: Make good things outstanding (at least try to) – connect the dots (people, topics, partnerships) – empower people – get things done – take decisions – work in a nice team (passionate and caring) – facilitate and coordinate solutions – sustainable and scalable change – explore innovative approaches– and so on. I also noted what I absolutely didn’t like or want to do: reports for reports’ sake, long unproductive meetings (talking for the sake of talking), politics, and huge egos.

Of course, I had an idea where I wanted to work: I absolutely wanted to work for UNICEF or for the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. I volunteered with UNICEF and interviewed with the Schwab Foundation, and didn’t get either full-time position. I was close to losing faith at that time. I looked back at my poster and tried to define the job that I was looking for more openly. I realised that I wanted to work on cross-sector partnership, building meaningful collaboration between companies and organisations in the non-profit sector. This new definition made me look more broadly and consider new possibilities. When I least expected it, the right opportunity came up, and things worked out. Today, my job description exactly matches that dream definition!

Meggi: During the time when I was most in doubt, I came across this graphic about entrepreneurship – you could just as well change the headline to “How to Never Give Up on Changing Your Career”. The breakthrough might be just around the corner.

If you’re in Switzerland, and speak German, you can catch a documentary on SRF tonight, Friday 28th March, at 9pm. You can also read more about the ICRC delegates’ work on this website: Between Frontlines (in English, French, German, Italian).

Meggi in Cameroon during her three-month internship with UNICEF

Have you made big changes in your life and want to inspire others to do the same? Or maybe you’re 100% happy staying put where you are and want to make a case for being satisfied with what you have? Get in touch to share your story!

It’s time for the second interview in my series of talking to people who’ve made big changes in their lives, following the first interview last month with Mike.

I am absolutely loving doing these interviews! As one friend put it the other day, the more people you talk to who have made The Jump, the more “normal” it seems. Your world can sometimes shrink when you stay in the same environment for a long time, and your comfort zone along with it. Hearing other people’s stories of risk taking, learning from mistakes, and creating new possibilities, is both fascinating and encouraging. It’s also clear that there is no one right answer for everyone, and we must forge our own path according to our talents, interests and goals.

This week, I’m talking to Charlotte, a friend from my time at Procter & Gamble in Geneva. We volunteered together on the Community Relations board, supporting local children’s charities, while we also had a special Swedish connection via her husband Isak. (Alas, the Canadian side of the family triumphed in last weekend’s ice hockey final, sniff. But Silver aint so bad…) She’s been on an incredibly exciting journey, both physical and emotional, since leaving P&G at the end of 2012…

Today, Charlotte Rydlund is a multilingual executive coach, business consultant and avid scuba diver. For almost seven years, Charlotte worked in the international corporate world in Geneva and New York in strategic sourcing, brand management and coaching, and was actively volunteering alongside. Over the years she realised that this wasn’t enough, she wanted more. She wanted to turn her passion for impacting community, society, business and people into a full-time endeavour. She wanted to fully leverage her creativity and entrepreneurial drive while living a balanced and fulfilled life. She wanted a bigger challenge. Quite the wish list! Over the last two and a half years, Charlotte has been working to turn these wishes into reality.

1) At what moment did you decide it was time for a change?

I can’t say there was necessarily one moment, because I had an inkling in the pit of my stomach for quite some time that I wanted to make a change. However, I do recall the evening when I got the motivation to finally take the plunge and make the change: over dinner, a good friend gave my husband and me a book* that altered our perspective on change from thought to action. It sparked new conversation and ideas that led to a more creative approach to how we would make the change. However, it took several more months to figure out exactly what our plan looked like, and how everything would unfold.

*Note from Anna: The book was Tim Ferriss’s The 4-Hour Work Week, and it has inspired others such as Escape the City’s Matt, who started a business book club (great idea by the way!) as a kind of group therapy that allowed him and his friends to explore the changes they wanted to make…

2) What was the biggest challenge you faced in making the change?

The biggest thing I think many face, as did I, is the question, “what if it doesn’t work?” The idea of possible failure can prevent many from making a dreamt-of change – at least I felt that way. Over several weeks, I came to realise that I had the education, experience, moral support, and finances that I needed. On top of that, I realised the worst thing that could happen was that I would learn something new and I would have to go back and get a job (which isn’t that bad). That was enough for me to move forward.

3) Where did you get the support you needed to make it happen?

Most important was feeling and knowing that I wasn’t doing this alone. This was a change that I was going to make together with my husband, and with family and friends cheering us on.

And cheer us on they did as we made our career and geographical change: (1) moving from Switzerland to Canada; (2) founding a non-profit called CANADIVE which mobilises local communities and divers to clean up underwater debris, taking us across Canada spending four months in a tent; and (3) incorporating The Gybe Group, which offers tailored consulting and executive coaching services primarily to small- and medium-sized businesses and their leadership teams.

4) What’s the best part of your lifestyle today?

I’m my own boss. I decide when my work is ready to be presented. I decide how to approach a certain client. I decide whether to take on a project or not. I decide when I am going to work and when I’m going to go for a walk, go diving or read a book. By working from home, primarily virtually, I am connected with clients and partners in Europe, North America and Asia, and I can still enjoy the outdoors and spend time with my family. There is no longer a ‘weekend’ but at the same time I no longer have a 9-5; instead I have a balanced lifestyle with interesting, challenging and fulfilling work.

5) What one piece of advice would you give to someone who is considering making a big career or lifestyle change?

Think of making the change as a learning experience or an experiment, instead of a change that is forever. By taking small steps and seeing the change as a series of small experiments, you avoid the overwhelming feeling that you can never go back. As I said, the worst that can happen is that you need to go back and get a job.

Charlotte in action with CANADIVE at Porteau Cove, north of Vancouver. Courtesy of photographer Kyla Hemmelgarn

Have you made big changes in your life and want to inspire others to do the same? Or maybe you’re 100% happy staying put where you are and want to make a case for being satisfied with what you have? Get in touch to share your story!

I can’t tell you how many people have told me this past year how brave I am. I find it quite flattering but also a little odd. I haven’t gone to war, climbed a mountain, or slain a dragon. I simply decided to quit my job.

So what is it that we’re so afraid of, that leads people to call such a step brave? Is it a fear of the unknown? A fear of failure or, at the opposite end of the spectrum, a fear of being successful? Is it rather a fear of what we’re leaving behind, of giving up a feeling of job security along with a steady income?

Brave or not, 2013 was a year of change for me, and with that change came a great deal of reflection. I spent a lot of time reading books and blogs, discussing different options with friends and family, analysing pros and cons. In the process, my eyes were opened to other people’s (yep, I’m going to use the J-word) journeys. What do they prioritise and value in life? What are their goals? Are they happy in their jobs? What are the things they wish they could do but don’t? What’s stopping them?

As part of this continuing exploration, I’m kicking off a series of interviews with people who have made big changes in their lives. I’m calling the series Fearless Fridays (I do love a good bit of alliteration) and I’ll be publishing a new interview every month. Often it’s a question of someone moving from a corporate environment to pursue their true passion or to achieve a more balanced lifestyle, but that may not always be the case. Perhaps it will be about making time for their passions outside of working hours, or even changing still within the corporate world to a role or company that better fits their values and interests.

By definition, I’ll be focusing on people who have made a big change, but I’ll also be interested in talking to people who are very happy in their jobs and see no need for change.

My first interview is with Mike, whom I met during one of my Basel weekends. He absolutely radiated with positive energy and confidence and it was incredibly refreshing and inspiring to talk to someone who seemed so content with who he was and what he was doing. I was keen to understand how he had got to where he was now, and what words of encouragement he might have for others who haven’t yet found that level of certitude that they’re on the right path.

Mike Low is a musician and kinesiology therapist. He composes, sings and plays piano rock with his band The Mike Story. Go back two years and he was a Junior Brand Manager in a cosmetics company, working long hours with little or no time for music. Today, his songs are all about personal stories of finding inspiration, losing people you love, and getting back on your feet to follow your own way. You can get a free download of the single To Be Free on Mike’s website.

1) At what moment did you decide it was time for a change?

I had spent another long day at the office. The automatic shades of the building went down, once again telling me it was time to call it a night. I was tired, ill, and decided to leave my job to follow my dreams instead!

2) What was the biggest challenge you faced in making the change?

My biggest challenge was worrying about whether I could make enough money to put food in my mouth and pay my rent. And it seemed tricky to get a regular part-time job with a high-flyer CV like mine (top-performing business student, with international work experience in China, USA, Australia, Germany, Switzerland).

3) Where did you get the support you needed to make it happen?

The emotional support came from my partner, all of my friends and my family. It was my 28th birthday and I organised a party with a live concert. Everyone said how much they enjoyed my music and encouraged me to take the next big step.

In terms of some financial security I got a job offer at Pure Aveda Salon and Spa. They welcomed me with a part-time job and seemed to be the first company not intimidated by my CV.

4) What’s the best part of your lifestyle today?

I get to do what I truly love. My big passion has always been music and alternative holistic medicine. Now, I get to do both and feel so blessed to make a difference in people’s lives. Also I have a much bigger impact on how I want to create the atmosphere of my working space and thereby attract patients and concerts that fit with me as a human being.

5) What one piece of advice would you give to someone who is considering making a big career or lifestyle change?

Know what you absolutely love doing, get a little security net if needed, close your eyes and jump! YOU CAN DO IT. I‘m more alive than I have ever been.

Mike is currently recording his album TO BE FREE, planning his CD release concert on 19th April 2014, while starting the final year of his Kinesiology education (complementary therapy). Watch a video of Mike’s story that he created as part of his CD Crowdfunding campaign.

Have you made big changes in your life and want to inspire others to do the same? Or maybe you’re 100% happy staying put where you are and want to make a case for being satisfied with what you have? Get in touch to share your story!